Ernesto Gismondi was an Italian engineer, entrepreneur and designer, born in 1930. After graduating in Aeronautical Engineering from the Politecnico di Milano and in Missile Engineering in Rome, he began working in lighting design and production. In 1960, he co-founded Artemide with Sergio Mazza. Under his leadership, Artemide became one of the world’s leading names in lighting design. Gismondi also took part in the Memphis movement and received the Compasso d’Oro Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018.